Florida Limited

Endpoints: Chicago-Tampa, Florida.

Numbers: 840/841

Amtrak Operated: Oct. 28, 1984 to Oct. 26, 1986

Named for:  The state of Florida

Pre-Amtrak History: None

Amtrak History: This was the unofficial name given to a through coach operating between Chicago and Tampa via the Capitol Limited and Silver Star. The cars were interchanged in Washington, D.C., and sometimes involved two cars.

 

The service began to fill the void left by the 1979 discontinuance of the Floridian between Chicago and Miami/St. Petersburg.

The 37-hour running time of the Florida Limited was 22 minutes longer than the last Chicago-Tampa schedule of the Floridian.

On April 7, 1991, Amtrak launched a Chicago-Miami through coach that also was interchanged in Washington between the Capitol Limited and Silver Star.

This service ended May 2, 1993, because of chronic tardiness by the northbound Star that often resulted in missed connections or passengers having to be sent by bus from Richmond, Virginia, to Pittsburgh.